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Story - I wrote a review of Animal Man #1 for the 52apalooza, so I'm going to try and not repeat myself here. Luckily Jeff Lemire moves on the story enough that I'm not going to have to do that too much.

Picking up from last issue's shocking cliffhanger, in which it is revealed that Buddy Baker's daughter Maxine also has animal powers, but hers involve communicating with dead creatures, Lemire takes the reader on a crazy ride with lots of creepy imagery and a story that turns a lot of what we thought we knew about Animal Man upside down.

Buddy and Maxine's adventures are just beginning, but already Lemire is making them memorable, the image of all these half-decayed animals is a haunting one, as are Animal Man's new tattoos. Last issue had a memorable moment when Buddy started to bleed from his eyes, and here we find out that the bleeding was just a part of a bigger pattern, that Buddy is forming a map to the red on his chest. What is 'the red'? We don't know yet, but Maxine does, and she's the one in charge. It's cool to see Lemire develop Buddy Baker's kids, whenever I've read Animal Man stories before, his kids have just been there to get in danger and to have terrible haircuts, but Maxine has a purpose now, and it's fascinating to see. From the dream sequence in #1 it was implied that Maxine is dangerous and a possible villain, but in this issue her intentions seem altruistic. We shall see.

She certainly didn't seem too altruistic when she turned that dude's hand into a chicken foot! That was another freaky image, and helps to demonstrate that this book is not your traditional superhero comic, there's a deep vein of horror here, and it's cool to see Lemire take perhaps the most suburban superhero and show a dark underbelly beneath his powers and world. That same horror tone is shown in the appearance of the three new villains. They first appear in a gruesome splash of engorged, hippopotamuses, and then burst out, taking over some humans. These are horrifying monsters, and I can't wait to see what their plan is.

Animal Man #1 was one of my favourite books of the DC relaunch, and #2 continues the strong work established in that issue. Lemire is taking a character that could be considered lame and putting him in the middle of the kind of story you wouldn't expect Animal Man to be involved in. Horror and Animal Man shouldn't mix, but they do, and it's wonderfully creepy.

Oh yeah, and Buddy's real name is Bernhard? WTF?

Art - This book wouldn't really work without Travel Foreman's art, he has a very unique style, and it's just the right amount of weird that it's perfect for Lemire's blend of suburbia and creepy horror. All the shocking creepy images like the zombie animals, the chicken hand, the hippos, the monsters at the end, Foreman draws it all brilliantly. I also like his panel layouts a lot, there's a page where he shows Buddy and Maxine's journey to 'the red' and it's depicted in a really cool, off-beat way. Foreman may not be for everybody, but for this book? He's the man.

Animal Man #2This will be in my weekly Starlord: Top to Bottom article later today but I have to say that this is still in my top 5 books that DC is producing. Both story and art are great with just enough weird in it to make it totally unique. This and I Vampire are the two books to keep an eye on.

Story: 9Art:9My Score: 9

Max Blyss wrote:Months and months and months and the whole thing is still just an intersection at Dipshit Lane & Chip on my Shoulder Ave.

Starlord wrote:Animal Man #2This will be in my weekly Starlord: Top to Bottom article later today but I have to say that this is still in my top 5 books that DC is producing. Both story and art are great with just enough weird in it to make it totally unique. This and I Vampire are the two books to keep an eye on.

I like Jeff Lemire. I think Essex County is a really special work. I think Sweet Tooth, although not nearly as good as Essex, is pretty interesting, too. For some reason, despite my respect for Lemire, I expected to be disappointed by this book. I'm not sure why. I guess I assumed no one could really make me like Animal Man. Despite being a vegetarian -- well, actually a vegan -- I never really enjoyed Morrison's eco-warrior Animal Man. Well, it's been years since I even tried to read those issues. Perhaps I would enjoy them more now than when they first came out.

Anyway, I picked up this book with a lot of silly baggage. Yet, despite my biases, I have to admit that Lemire does a pretty good job with Animal Man. I won't say that this is my favorite book of the DC reboot. But I can understand why many fanboys are calling this series their favorite. The writing is strong for two reasons: Lemire thinks up some very imaginative supernatural scenarios, and he develops a strong family dynamic between the characters. This book has a lot of potential. I can imagine some very dramatic -- and, potentially, heart-wrenching -- interactions within the Baker household.

But what really makes this book standout is the art. My God, Travel Foreman is perfect for this book. He makes Lemire's ideas dance and swirl and jump in all directions. The page designs are at once complex and easy to follow. Jim Steranko eat your heart out. Someone has finally matched you.

Overall, this is a very strong issue. And I am glad that I made the effort to seek it out.

I'm moving into a new house on Friday, my entire existence has been chaos for the last 2 months. If I couldn't have gotten the last couple of picks on my phone I never would have read them.

Speaking of, I read Animal Man #1 today while waiting to get a tetanus shot (took a rusty nail in the hand while unloading the attic this morning, yay) and it was pretty good although I'm still a bit meh on the character. Hopefully I can find time to read #2 tomorrow.

StoryThis issue was my first experience with the character Animal Man. Since I didn't read the first issue I felt lost reading this. However, I felt the writer did a great job with the character interactions. His dialogue was definitely a strong point to the writing here. I felt the issue was well written and won't let my lack of understanding the story drag the score down. There just wasn't enough here for me to pick up the next issue or seek out the first issue.

ArtI liked the art here. Foreman seems to be a good fit for the tone of the book. I was a fan of his back when he was on Iron Fist.